The Hilo Community Players will mark the 50th anniversary of the 1975 film adaptation of the musical “The Rocky Horror Show” with nine performances of the risque interactive play starting tonight at the Keawe Theater in Hilo.
The audaciously silly show will be performed at 7:30 p.m. tonight through Sunday and again on Oct. 24 through Oct. 26.
On Oct. 30, a special double-feature will be performed on Halloween night at 7:30 p.m. and midnight, and costume contests will be held at both.
Parental discretion is advised because the story of a naive couple who get stranded in a storm with a cohort of unique characters explores themes of sexual liberation and gender fluidity.
Rachel Klein, executive director of the Hilo Community Players and a co-director of “The Rocky Horror Show,” said the Players perform this play every other year.
“Each time we produce the show, we try to be creative with our staging, there is a unique cast, and it’s a different experience than other productions, but some elements stay the same because they are an homage to moments in the film as part of the cult classic everyone knows and loves,” Klein said.
The 1973 London musical “The Rocky Horror Show” by Richard O’Brien was adapted into the film “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” starring Tim Curry in 1975. The live musical is known for its audience participation. The Keawe Theater production offers $10 prop kits attendees can reserve with their tickets to participate further.
“Because of the interactive nature of the show, it’s also really fun for us to see what unfolds differently at each performance,” Klein said. “The actors have to be ready and think on their feet, because they never know what the different audiences will bring to the mix.”
Actor Sean Douglas described the show’s energy as “’70s glam rock” and “campy, but intentionally so.” Douglas plays Brad, the newly-engaged young man who experiences car trouble at a mysterious castle with his fiancée, Janet.
Douglas said the couple begin the show as a very socially traditional pair before their expanding worldviews test their bond. He said the message the really resonates for him is about the benefits of personal growth and making room for every kind of person in a community.
“The growth of the characters is to have their brains expanding and then to have them come back together at the end, and they’re still who they were, they’re just more. I think that’s a really powerful message,” he said. “This show is very important to a lot of the queer community, so it’s really heartwarming to be part of something that’s important to a marginalized group like that.”
Klein said one change is that she and co-director Kimo Apaka decided to make Dr. Frank N. Furter — the mad scientist character who builds the scantily-clad Rocky Horror and sings the song “Sweet Transvestite” as a personal introduction — a nonbinary person. Nonbinary identification reflects a fluid lack of exclusive adherence to either traditional gender.
“I think that it’s important for all members of the community to see themselves represented on stage, and this show speaks to that very well,” Klein said. “The ideas of acceptance and understanding, and being open minded to people who might be different from ourselves is a very important element of this production, and we need to see that modeled in our community regularly.”
Klein said drag performer Moses Lee designed “risque, stylishand fun” costumes adorned with feathers, sequins, rhinestones, pearls and custom-built pieces.
Klein and Apaka said the audience of about 100 people will be seated on risers in a horseshoe shape around a centerpiece, with a live six-piece band completing the circle. The centerpiece will morph into a bed, a stage, Brad and Janet’s car, and the iconic red lips the show is known for, while the walls behind the audience transport them to Dr. Frank’s strange castle.
“I think this setup will be especially entertaining to audiences as they get to be further immersed in the story and see it come to life from all different angles, and for some audiences, they’ll be especially close to all the action,” said Apaka, a University of Hawaii at Hilo alum with a long history of performing at the university’s Performing Arts Center, in addition to roles with HEART and a fifth-place finish on the reality TV show “Big Brother.”
“We definitely want the audience to suspend their disbelief, jump into the story completely, and enjoy the night and how the story unfolds with us,” Apaka said. “I hope audiences have a fun time and are reminded that this planet is big enough for all of us to live our most authentic and fabulous lives on together.”
Tickets to “The Rocky Horror Show” are available at tinyurl.com/yuhtmmfz for $25 in advance and $5 more if purchased at the doors, which open half an hour before showtime each night.
Email Kyveli Diener at kdiener@hawaiitribune-herald.com.